My First Lager

[EvisTheGreat]

This is my first lager, and I have a few questions. I have a standard Light American Lager kit and am using White Labs WLP800 Pilsner Lager Yeast. The general process is to boil, then ferment at 55 degrees until I get a stable hydro reading. Then rack to a secondary @ 35 degrees for up to a month, and then bottle.

My questions are:
1.When in this process do I perform the diactyl rest? And what temperature, over what amount of time, does this entail?

2. Is the secondary fermentation required for the entire month? Too short, too long?

3.I think the secondary fermentation needs to be performed in a new container, is this correct?

4.I should add Irish Moss to clarify the beer further, Pros/cons? When and how do I add Irish Moss?

Thanks,
The New Guy

 

[BryceL]

I like to do a diacetyl rest when fermentation is about 75% done, based on the hydrometer readings. I tend to check the gravity around the 5-7 day mark, if it's around 75% done, then I'll begin to step the temperature up over several days until it's in the upper 60's. Hold it there for a couple days (or longer based on the taste) and then begin to drop the temperature back down.

Yes, secondary fermentation should be done in a new container. I would do a minimum of one month in secondary (lagering), depending on the beer. I use whirfloc as a clarifying agent (added 10 mins left in the boil), so I'm not sure about the procedure for irish moss.

 

[EvisTheGreat]

I am lagering at 55F, what temperature should I raise the wort to during the diactyl rest and how quickly should I achieve this temperature? Second, how quickly should I drop the wort after the rest, and must it really get down to 35F?

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

I am lagering at 55F, what temperature should I raise the wort to during the diactyl rest and how quickly should I achieve this temperature? Second, how quickly should I drop the wort after the rest, and must it really get down to 35F?

I would let it come up to 65-70F. I just set my temp controller and however long it takes it I warm up is as long as it takes it. After the rest you want to get as cold as you can before freezing. The colder it is the better(but slower) it will lager out. The general consensus I gather is a week of lagering for every 8 gravity points of your OG. I.E. 1.056 = 7 weeks lagering. 1.040=5 weeks etc etc etc.

 

[senfo]

The general consensus I gather is a week of lagering for every 8 gravity points of your OG. I.E. 1.056 = 7 weeks lagering. 1.040=5 weeks etc etc etc.

I guess this is another case of "ask 10 different brewers and you'll get 10 different answers."

I've read 1 week for every 10 gravity points, but take that with a grain of salt because I've only lagered one beer so far.

 

[DenverUSMC]

I would suggest a yeast starter as well. Temp control and pitch rates are essential for lagers.

 

[Cyclman]

Big starter, oxygenation are very important to having a good lager fermentation. If the yeast don't start strong out of the gate, the beer will suffer.

 

[JayDubWill]

I ferment my lagers at 50 for 5 days then raise 2 degrees a day until i hit 60 for the diacetyl rest. I then secondary and drop the temp again at 2 deg/day until I reach 40. I find that its very drinkable after two months of lagering.

 

[JayDubWill]

I forgot to add I generally do the diacetyl rest for 4 days.

 

[EvisTheGreat]

Ok, so an O.G. of 1.041 is 5 weeks. After the diactyl rest, do I gradually change to near freezing (like 5 degrees per day) or just turn the dial all the way down at once?

 

[EvisTheGreat]

After lagering, do I immediately bottle or allow the wort to return to 70F? Are the bottles stored at 70F to carbonate, or back at the primary temperature?

 

[JayDubWill]

as far as dropping to lagering temp all at once or gradually is often debated and is generally successful either way. The logic behind the slow temp drop process is that it gets the yeast slowly adjusted to the new cold temp allowing them to continue cleaning up the beer and rapidly dropping the temp causes too much yeast to drop out too quickly and/or stunning the yeast taking them longer to work their post fermentation magic. The opposing theory is that none of that really matters too much. After lagering you can bottle immediately with whatever your normal amount of priming sugar is and allow the bottles to sit at room temp for ~3 weeks or so. If they are not fully carbed let them sit another couple weeks longer at room temp before trying again. It may take awhile but they will eventually carb up.

 

[vNmd]

I ferment my lagers at 50 for 5 days then raise 2 degrees a day until i hit 60 for the diacetyl rest. I then secondary and drop the temp again at 2 deg/day until I reach 40. I find that its very drinkable after two months of lagering.

I forgot to add I generally do the diacetyl rest for 4 days.

I just started my D-rest yesterday on my first lager and was wondering the same thing. I was looking for a "sequence of events" type of post until I work out my own system I am comfortable with. Thanks for good info!

 

[SBGuy212]

What temp should the wort be raised to for the diactyl rest, I am lagering at 55 degrees. Second, how quickly should I drop the temperature for the secondary lagering and should I drop it all the day down to 35?

 

[JayDubWill]

What temp should the wort be raised to for the diactyl rest, I am lagering at 55 degrees. Second, how quickly should I drop the temperature for the secondary lagering and should I drop it all the day down to 35?

First: Start with raising the temp 10F degrees above fermentation temp, so let it free rise to 65F in your case. Hold it there for 3 days and do a Diacetyl test. There are other ways to do this test, here is my method:

• Pour 3 oz of beer into 2 glasses (6 oz total); one will be the test and the other the control. A 5oz sample glass works perfect for this, but any glass, even a coffee mug will work.
• Heat the test beer in the microwave until it reaches 160F and remove. This only takes about 20 seconds in my microwave.
• Cover both the test and control tightly with plastic wrap.
• Let the test beer cool to room temperature along side the control. I'm lazy so I just let it sit for 30 minutes or so but you could also set the test beer in an ice bath to speed it up.
• After the test and control are at the same temp remove the plastic wrap from the control and take a wiff. It should smell like warm beer, maybe very grainy if you used pilsner malt or less intense if you used 2-row.
• Next remove the plastic wrap from the test and take a wiff. If the test smells significantly different, with a buttery character then you still have diacetyl and need to give the beer more time or raise the fermentation temp another few degrees.

On my Oktoberfest I'm currently lagering I had to raise the temp to 70F and it took almost a full week until the beer passed this test. Having once brewed a diacetyl bomb that I ended up dumping i'll never brew a lager without this test. That being said you should know a diacetyl rest isn't always necessary either; given enough time the yeast will clean up the diacetyl at primary temps as well.

to answer your other question, dropping 2F degree per day is what you should be aiming for until you reach lagering temps (28-40F).

If you are serious about brewing lagers, read the Braukaiser's paper on the subject.